First, let me say that after reading a bunch of reviews, researching safety websites, I purchased the Britax Marathon 70 and a much cheaper First Years True Fit Recline Convertible car seat for our other car. I must honestly say the First Years in a better seat. What did I judge my criteria on? I judged it on ease of installation, cost, comfort to my baby, and safety. Don't get my wrong, the Marathon does all that's needed, but to me, some of the padding seemed a bit cheaper, and installation was not so easy as people said here.

*First, installation did take me about 30 minutes on the True Fit, because there's some rethreading of the anchor belts on forward installation (takes 30 sec), but that was nothing compared to about 2 hours with the Marathon (although, on the Marathon, I tried to use the Snap offs with the seat belt, which in theory, should be easier). My snap off on one side wouldn't work b/c there's a plastic nob on the belt...although it feels snug, only 1 is in use.

*Second, the True Fit is $149 vs. $279....that should seal the deal alone.

*Third, there's all this removable padding that is not velcro'd on. Once removed, it took me about 15 minutes to figure out where it went again.

*Fourth, removing the extra support padding on the Marathon would not keep your kid safe....only some foam between the base and your child. On the First Years, if you removed the extra support, my son still has ton of foam.

Don't get me wrong, the Britax is listed as one of the best car seats out there. And if I didn't have a comparable, I'd still get the Britax as my pick (based on word of mouth alone); however, since I have a comparable, I can't see why someone would debate between something $100 cheaper and felt like it offered more.

Posted on: 2010-09-26
By G. Jonesoro

This car seat is great, Britax is a great brand. The recline feature is okay. It only reclines to about the angle of a rear facing car seat, but it does help to keep the head from flopping. My only complaint is the car seat was shipped in its original box which contains no packing material and probably wasn't intended to be used for a shipping box because it was very beat up when I got it. Othewise, this is a great car seat, very soft and plush. Our son seems to like it.

Posted on: 2010-09-25
By KatieC

Pros:
- Love the color combination. We bought the Crimson and its a great contrast with the black.
- Fabric feels soft and nice to the touch.
- Very roomy. Our 9 month old seems to be really comfortable in it compared to her infant car seat.
- Lap/Shoulder belt installation was simple to follow (although there's a Con below).
- Harness adjusts easily.
- Love the safety features

Cons:
- When we were installing the lap/shoulder belt, it was a little tricky, heck it was a pain, snapping in the blue lock that the belt threads throught under the seat. One of the blue locks would not click down! Had to keep adjusting the belts and just kept trying over and over. It finally clicked into place and we had NO IDEA what did it!

- I wish the seat can recline further back. The instructions says to recline the seat all the way back for rear facing. But after installing it, the seat is still pretty upright so when my daughter sleeps, her head falls forward. I'm sure the recline is perfect for forward facing, but for rear facing the angle is not enough. I'm gonna have to sit in the back with my daughter to keep her head from falling forward when she sleeps.

- This may seem silly but no cup holders! Seriously for $270+ car seat, you would think a cup holder would be included?

- The velcro on the side to hold the straps for ease of putting the baby in is a nice touch however, they only hold the bottom piece of the straps. The actual part that has the harness and buckle still falls in the middle of the seat. I still had to move them out of the way. I wish the velcro is higher to you can attach the more of the straps out of the way.

- Since we weren't using the tether straps, I used the pocket to store the straps. But the pocket got very bulky when the straps are kept in there. Since we have the Marathon installed behind the front passenger seat, the bulky pocket took additional room between the back of the seat and the car seat. We have a 2 door Honda Accord

Overall:
I bought the car seat for its safety features and comfort for my daughter. We've only had it since yesterday 9/20/10 so we still have yet to really use it. I will update my review in about a month. By the way, we have a 2 door Honda Accord.

Posted on: 2010-09-21
By Msnehz
Helpful index: 100%

We're from Venezuela and here nobody use car seat, there is no law requiring their use!
But we are responsible, so we thought we did a good choice to buy this chair.
What we like and we are pleased that fits perfectly reclined in the center rear seat of our Ford Fiesta 2007 is a very small car
We believe that our son will always be secure in his marathon 70
The installation was a bit difficult because our car has no latch system but was perfect in the end.
I have no cons because I havent another chair to compare, in my city do not sell this type of chairs (any!!!)
I do not write more because I know little English jejejeje

Posted on: 2010-09-20
By Erick

This is, by far, the most safe car seat I have ever seen/used. I didn't think I would ever 'love' a car seat, but I honestly do. This seat is solid, and so much more sturdy than my Graco Snug Ride carrier car seat. I am beyond impressed! I am using this for my four month old who fits great in it. She is snug and very comfortable in this. There is so much less room for her to move around, which makes me feel secure knowing that if we were involved in an accident, she wouldn't move much. When I installed it in the vehicle, I noticed how much better it fit in the seat. It doesn't budge in my 2008 Nissan Quest bucket seat in the second row. It fits like it was made attached to the seat. It does NOT budge. The adjustable shoulder straps are effortless. It is so easy. To get a great fit takes only a second, which is great! This car seat is worth every penny I paid for it! I love it! I can't say enough about it!

Posted on: 2010-09-19
By Heather